العربية
中国
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिन्दी
Italiano
日本語
Português
Русский
EspañolINTERSTATE 476
'Interstate 476' is a -long123 auxiliary Interstate Highway, designated between Interstate 95 near Chester, Pennsylvania and Interstate 81 near Scranton, Pennsylvania, serves as the primary north-south Interstate corridor through eastern Pennsylvania. It consists of both the 21.5 mile2 'Mid-County Expressway', locally referred to as the "'Blue Route'", through the suburban Philadelphia counties of Delaware and Montgomery, and the 110.6 mile3 'Northeast Extension' of the Pennsylvania Turnpike connecting the Philadelphia metropolitan area with the Lehigh Valley, the Poconos, and the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area.
While proposed as early as 1929, the construction of the Mid-County Expressway through Delaware County, Pennsylvania was not completed until 1991 due to massive community and environmental opposition during the freeway revolts of the 1960s and 1970s, leading ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' to dub it "the most costly, most bitterly opposed highway in Pennsylvania history."[4]
Following the completion of the Mid-County Expressway, in 1996 the Interstate 476 designation was extended to include the entire length of the existing Northeast Extension. Since the extension, I-476 has been the longest auxiliary Interstate highway in the United States.
| Contents |
| Route description |
| Blue Route |
| Northeast Extension |
| History |
| Mid-County Expressway |
| Northeast Extension |
| Exit list |
| See also |
| References |
| External links |
Route description
The Blue Route north of US 1.
Blue Route
| Major cities 'Bolded cities' are officially-designated control cities for signs[5][5][7] |
|---|
★ 'Chester' ★ West Conshohocken ★ 'Philadelphia' (via I-76) ★ 'Plymouth Meeting' ★ 'Allentown' ★ 'Wilkes-Barre' ★ 'Scranton' ★ Clarks Summit |
The portion of Interstate 476 between Interstate 95 and Interstate 276, running north-south through Delaware County, Pennsylvania, is officially known as the 'Mid-County Expressway' and the 'Veterans Memorial Highway', as well as by its ubiquitous nickname, the 'Blue Route'. The road begins at Interstate 95 near the southwest Philadelphia suburb of Chester, near Philadelphia International Airport.25
Heading north, the road immediately narrows to a four-lane parkway north of Exit 1, a reduced design built due to local environmental concerns.[8] The route winds through the western Philadelphia suburbs of Wallingford, Swarthmore, and Springfield, meeting U.S. Route 1 at a massive three-level diamond interchange.[9]
At Pennsylvania Route 3, the route widens to six lanes,[10] bisecting the famous Main Line at U.S. Route 30, and interchanging with the Interstate 76, the Schuylkill Expressway, at Conshohocken. After crossing the Schuylkill River, the freeway interchanges with a few more roads and then comes to an end at the Mid-County toll barrier with the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Plymouth Meeting.[11][12]
Northeast Extension
Approaching exit 44 (PA 663).
.jpg)
Northeast Extension as it appeared in 1983, prior to connecting with I-476
Beyond the toll barrier, Interstate 476 enters the Pennsylvania Turnpike system, interchanging with Interstate 276 and continuing north as the 'Northeast Extension' of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The route continues through the Philadelphia suburbs, past Lansdale and Quakertown, and into the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area. It interchanges with U.S. Route 22 near Allentown, which also offers an indirect connection to Pennsylvania Route 309 and Interstate 78.[13]
North of Allentown, the route enters the Poconos, tunneling underneath Blue Mountain, and meeting U.S. Route 209 near Lehighton. Continuing through the mountains, it cuts through Hickory Run State Park, interchanging with Interstate 80 on the perimeter on its way to the end of the toll ticket system at Bear Creek, Pennsylvania.
North of the toll barrier, the route meets Pennsylvania Route 115, which provides access to nearby Wilkes-Barre. Near Pittston, an interchange provides an indirect connection to Interstate 81 through Scranton. The route then crosses the Wyoming Valley and skirts around Scranton, with an exit to local Keyser Avenue.[14] North of Scranton, the route comes to an abrupt end at a hairpin curve in Clarks Summit, with connections to Interstate 81, U.S. Route 6 and U.S. Route 11.
Lehigh Tunnel heading Southbound
History
Mid-County Expressway
Originally planned as far back as 1929, the Mid-County Expressway was later proposed by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission as the "Chester Extension" of the Pennsylvania Turnpike in 1954. After the advent of the Interstate Highway System, the project was transferred to the Pennsylvania Department of Highways to be built as part of the system, designating it first as 'Interstate 495', and later as 'Interstate 480', as I-76 was designated as I-80S at the time. The present-day I-476 designation was assigned on February 6, 1964 when I-80S was renumbered as I-76.[15]
A 1960 map of central Delaware County, oriented with east on top, outlining the proposed corridors of the Mid-County Expressway.
As one of the most controversial Interstate Highways in Pennsylvania, construction of I-476 began in 1967, but was not completed until 1991 between MacDade Blvd.(Exit 1) and Interstate 76 (Exit 16), and until 1992 between Germantown Pike east/Chemical Rd.(Exit 19) and Interstate 276/Pennsylvania Turnpike (Exit 20), due to litigation between the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and several communities in the road's path over environmental concerns. However, the section of Interstate 476(south end of I-476) between I-95 and MacDade Blvd.(Exit 1) was opened in 1987, but the signs refer to as "To MacDade Blvd" until 1991 when I-476/The Blue Route was opened between Exits 1 and 16. An agreement in 1985 led to many environmental compromises in the road's design, including a downsized four-lane design south of Pennsylvania Route 3, ramp meters, and federal scenic route status, prohibiting the erection of advertisement billboards along the entire freeway portion. While the redesigned highway was largely well-received, the constriction to four lanes has led to bottleneck conditions in the area, and many communities that originally opposed the road have now called for its widening.[17]
The road is currently undergoing a complete rehabilitation project, including paving, bridge repair, and ramp maintenance of the entire length of the freeway between Interstate 95 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike.[18]
Northeast Extension
PA 9 (1955-1996)
The Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike system opened in stages from November 23, 1955 to November 7, 1957, and was originally designated 'Pennsylvania Route 9'.[19]
A sign hinting that perhaps I-476 was originally going to be PA 476
The hairpin curve at the highway's northern terminus was designed to allow for expansion northward to the New York state line. However, as with the Chester Extension to the south, it was decided to incorporate this segment as part of Interstate 81 following the advent of the Interstate system.[20]
The highway includes a major, 4,461-foot tunnel through Blue Mountain known as the Lehigh Tunnel. The tunnel was named as such so as not to cause confusion with the existing Blue Mountain Tunnel on the mainline. The tunnel was originally to be named for Turnpike Commission chairman Thomas J. Evans, but this was changed due to his July 25, 1967 conviction for conspiracy to defraud the Turnpike Commission of $19 million. The Lehigh Tunnel was originally a two-lane tunnel in the manner of the mainline turnpike's original seven tunnels, until it was "twinned" in 1991.[21]
In 1996, after the expansion of the Lehigh Tunnel and the completion of the I-276/I-476/PA 9 interchange, the I-476 designation was extended up the entire length of the Northeast Extension, replacing the PA 9 designation. This extension resulted in I-476 surpassing the 120 mile Interstate 495 in Massachusetts as the longest auxiliary Interstate highway.[22]
PennDOT is in the preliminary stages of planning the widening of the Northeast Extension from Mid-County to Lansdale from 4 lanes to 6.[23]
Exit list
See also
★ Pennsylvania Turnpike
★ Interstate 276
References
1. Resurfacing
2. No remedy soon for a clogged Blue Route
3. Pennsylvania Turnpike Toll/Mileage Calculator
4. FHWA By Day - December 19
5. . Created by (, 2007-06-30). Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
6. . Created by (, 2007-06-30). Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
7. Onramp to I-476 from PA 663. AARoads.com (2004-04-24). Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
8. Reducing Impacts Through Improved Highway Section
9. Map/Satellite image of Exit 5
10. Satellite image of Exit 9
11. I-476 between US 30 and I-276
12.
13. I-476 at the Lehigh Valley interchange
14. I-476 around Scranton
15. Was I-76 Numbered to Honor Philadelphia for Independence Day, 1776?
16. History of the Blue Route
17. Asphalt: the Magazine of the Asphalt Institute, Summer 1997
18. I-476 Improvement Project
19.
20.
21. Turnpike History
22. Route Log and Finder List, table 2
23. Northeast Extension Plans Open To Public Monday Night
24. DeLorme Street Atlas USA 2007, Toggle Measure Tool. Retrieved on 2007-02-27.
25. Exit 1
External links
★ I-476 Improvement Project
This article provided by Wikipedia. To edit the contents of this article, click here for original source.
psst.. try this: add to faves
